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bender

I have a bender that looks alot like the one on e-bay right now. The over flow jar has the shut off valve directly threaded into it but the shut off is stuck. No sure if it's open closed or some where in the middle. How can I tell. Is there a good why to loosen it and do I really need it? Next the top of the bender jar itself is a plastic elbow. It also seems to be stuck. Any trick to un-stick this. Also are replacements available if/when I break it. Now I know one of the plastic parts is a check valve. The T looking thing is also a check valve but I'm not sure how to put it together. Been to all the archives but the ones that I really need are old and the pictures are not attached. Any help would be appreciated and I can tell you any pictures would even be better.

I think that overflow thing you spoke of is a moisture trap. You definately need one to go between the pump and releaser to protect the pump. Especially if its a rotary vane pump like a Gast. The pictures show the way I set mine up last year. It hangs on the side of a cage tote. The tee check valve on bottom ties into the pipe line in front and it goes through a hole I drilled in the plywood where its connected to the other check valve then into a pipe that runs into the tank.It should be so when vacuum is applied the tee check opens letting sap into the glass chamber. The check on the tank side should be sucked closed. When it releases the valves reverse roles. The L fitting on top goes to a moisture trap I made out of pvc pipe and a raquet ball. The one you have is small but I cant see why it would'nt work. Its easy to make one if you want. I got the idea from someone else on the trader. the pipe coming out of(or going into) the other side of the trap connects to the pump. The plastic L tends to turn hard on the two that I have. If their too tight it'll cause the releaser not to function properly. If you're afraid of breaking it you might try some lube or better yet, dunk the top in some hot water to see if that loosens things up. Parts are available somewhere in the midwest but thats all I know.bender releaser 001.jpgbender releaser 002.jpgbender releaser 003.jpg

So what it looks like is the T hooks to the bottom of the jar. This then hooks to a short tube that hooks to the other check valve that hooks to the main line. In your picture the sap would come out from the T at a 90 degree angle to the jar. In this instance both valves are in the same direction. When there is vacuum the t is shut and the line is open. When it is released the line will shut and the t will open? Your going to put something on the step down part of the t so the sap flows down?

I just looked at this in a different way Does the main line hook to the stepped down part of the T? If so which way does the other check valve flow. If I hook the t like yours and put a small amount of tubing on it the next thing would be the check valve that would dump to the tank. OK so which end do I put on the tubing from the t. If I blow into the CV and its open then thats the end to put on the tube from the t

The other check valve is behind the plywood(actually its half way through it). When vacuum is applied the tee check valve is open letting sap in from the mainline which connects to the step down side. At that time, the other check valve is sucked closed. When it releases to the tank, the tee check valve gets pushed shut and the other check valve gets pushed open by the out rushing sap. I'll try to get a closer pic if you're still not sure. Let me know. PS. The tank is on the backside of what you see.

Yes.the other valve(piece) allows sap to move away trom the tee or releaser. In other words, both check valves open and close in the same direction. They both close if you tip it one way and they both open if you tip it the other. The pressure comes from between them causing them to react differently.

Thats the best way to do it. It'll make more sense when you see it in action. You may have to adjust the weight on top of the float depending on how much vacuum you pull. You'll know if the float starts bouncing. They're kind of finicky.